A Stitch in Time
by Earendil Eldar
Summary: Glor' and Ere' find themselves in our time due to a little 'snag' in one of Vaire's weavings. Fortunately the Twins are still here to help them, but who will really need to aid whom?
1. An Unexpected Arrival

Glorfindel had been standing in the woods listening to the sound of a crow in the distance chattering with another of its kind. His eyes were closed as he walked, concentrating on the avian conversation. For a moment the sound dulled and the Elf did not hear anything, causing him to open his eyes and look around. When he did he found that he had wandered a little farther than he thought… right into little town. That was odd, he thought, for he had not known that there were any Mortal villages nearby on this route. But then, so very much had changed since Estel's coronation, perhaps this place only just came to be in the last few years.

His musing was broken by a giggling coming from below him. Looking down, Glorfindel saw a child of bright red, wavy hair and ruddy complexion looking up and laughing. Glorfindel wore a questioning look as the child pointed and said, "Your ears are funny!" Glorfindel grew all the more perplexed; no one had ever referred to ear-points as "funny" to his knowledge.

"My ears are _pointed_," he said, feeling like adding for the record that he thought the Mortal child's rounded ears were rather amusing as well.

"What are you?" the sharp-witted child asked.

"What _am_ i?" Glorfindel said, returning the question and wondering what manner of game this was supposed to be. He really didn't feel all that much like playing along. "I am an _Elf_."

"An Elf? You can't be! Elves are tiny," retorted the all-knowing child, holding his thumb and index finger about two inches apart to demonstrate what size an Elf should be.

"Elves are most assuredly not tiny!" Glorfindel said indignantly. He supposed he ought to either be gentler to the child or utterly ignore him, for clearly this one was not mentally all there. Thankfully Glorfindel heard someone impatiently calling his name not far from where he had come. "What?" he called back, still rather annoyed with the kid who was still staring at his ears. "I am here."

"Where?" was called back, by someone sounding equally annoyed.

"In the clearing… in this little market," Glorfindel called. There was a moment of silence and then Erestor was standing at the edge of the wood, looking about in complete confusion.

"When did this get here?" Erestor said in a moment of wholly uncharacteristic astonishment.

Now the little child who was so amused by Glorfindel's ears was staring at Erestor, pointing again, saying in delight, "You have funny ears, too!"

"I have _what_!" Erestor said in utter offense, staring at the child in disbelief of such impudence. "Come on, Glor', let's get out of here. Your meandering is going to hold up the lot of us."

"Glorfy?" called a shocked voice from just up the way.

"And 'Restor! 'Ro, am I seeing things? What are these two doing _here_?"

That was Elladan and Elrohir, sure enough, but why they seemed so surprised to see them was anyone's guess. Obviously they had wandered off from the path and roamed into this little village as well. 'Restor, ever-observant, however, noticed that they were not dressed as they were that afternoon accompanying the party going to the Havens. The twins were along just to say their farewells, of course, and then it would be back to wreaking havoc upon poor old Arda until they decided they'd had enough fun.

For a while Erestor just stood there as the twins made their way over to the elder Eldar. It was rather slow going, as apparently the two were popular in the small community that neither Erestor nor Glorfindel had known existed until just then.

Glorfindel was looking about him and seeming concerned. "Elladan," the blond said when the twins had finally worked their way through the crowd, "what in all of Arda are some of these people wearing?"

One of the twins shrugged and said, "it's the fashion now. They only wear these things," he said picking up the hem of Erestor's robe sleeve, "as fancy dress."

"How did you two get here?" the other twin asked.

"How did _we_…. Just where _are_ we?" Erestor said, beginning to like this place less and less. There was something that just didn't seem right to him.

Elrohir laughed. "We are where we have always been. How did you two get back from Valinor though? I thought the idea was that one didn't exactly come and go. A bit of a one-way trip, isn't it?"

"_Back_ from Valinor?" Now Glorfindel was beginning to share Erestor's concern. They were only just on their way… but the twins knew that. Obviously this was one of their rather less amusing little games. Still, he could not imagine people dressing as they were here. He'd never seen such garments, it looked to him as though they were all going about in under garments. Only a few, themselves included, were dressed properly. Glorfindel felt sure that not even the twins could get an entire village to dress like that for one of their pranks.

Erestor, on the contrary, was less passive than his partner was and decided that he would rein those two in himself. "Listen, this is a difficult enough journey, for me it is at any rate, and for your adar. Would the two of you kindly behave just this once? You did not behave this way when your nana departed." Erestor knew that would check them, even if it wasn't exactly kind.

"We were just going to ask you how she is," Elladan said rather quietly. "I don't know what journey you are on, but we would love to see our ada again. Is he here with you?"

Erestor glared at Elladan, trying to hold back from telling him off. This was not in the slightest bit funny to the Noldo.

"I do not believe this is a prank, Erestor," Glorfindel said looking about. "Look up on the hill there," he said pointing beyond the fence surrounding the town. "I've never seen colorful armored carriages like that before. Something strange is going on here."

"I wouldn't put it past them!" Erestor snarled. "Your father will not appreciate this," he said threateningly, walking back to the woods from which he had emerged.

"Where are you going, Ere'?" Elrohir called. "There is nothing out that way, just woods."

"I am going back to the host and suggest to Elrond that we depart immediately. If his sons do not have respect for this happening than I care little if they stay in Arda and disappear into thin air."

Glorfindel watched as Erestor walked away and had a feeling that he would not find the host they'd been with. "All right lads, jokes aside now. There is no path through there anywhere that passes through Rhudaur's land, is there?"

"There was," Elrohir replied. "But that was ages ago, literally."

"Things have changed a bit, Glor'," Elladan understated.

"Changed since when?" Glorfindel tried to clarify.

"Since the third age, even the fourth," Elladan said. "That was when things got really bad though. We all thought that seeing Barad-dûr meant that it was all over and peace would reign again. Well, we'd known that even those dark days were nothing compared to the whole Gondolin thing and all. But the Darkness that came at the end of the fourth age… be glad you sailed after 'Wen's death."

"You aren't joking about this?" Glorfindel said in shock.

Both twins shook their heads solemnly. "But how did you and Ere' get here?" Elrohir asked. "Don't worry, he won't get too far before he finds out that the path isn't there anymore. Even the stone trolls are gone."

"I'd heard something off the path and went to have a look, since I wasn't leaving I was supposed to be along for security… as were you two." Glorfindel said.

"Forget it, Glor', we invented that game," Elrohir smirked.

"I am not playing it. We are on the journey to Mithlond. I walked off the path before we broke camp for the day and must have taken a while because Erestor came after me, apparently. I didn't know that there was a village here, but I thought that perhaps it was only just founded since Estel reclaimed Arnor and promised to rebuild Annúminas. I knew that there was something strange going on because I was listening to a conversation between a couple of crebain and then everything was silent and dull for a moment before I heard the sounds from the town."

Elladan looking intensely interested. "That is very strange. Tell us more about this."

"Let's sit down and have a pint first," Elrohir suggested. "Erestor will be able to find us." The twins lead Glorfindel to a very small pub where Elrohir leaned against the bar and practically attacked the barmaid, asking her for three "rocks." The waitress tried to give him a humorless look, but it clearly wasn't easy for her to deny his allure. "You're boyfriend can meet me on the tilt again at 5, if he dares," Elrohir said with a wink.

"What is this?" Glorfindel said taking some sort of flimsy cup from Elrohir's hand.

"Ale," Elladan said. "We never used to care much for it, but it beats water these days. Anyway, that stuff is really good."

"I meant this glass… of sorts." Glorfindel sniffed hesitantly at the frothing drink before taking a little sip. It was no Dorwinion wine, but it wasn't half bad.

"Just a plastic cup," Elrohir said. "Anyway, run that by us again, about how you wound up here."

"A _what_?" Glorfindel pleaded in confusion. Why was everything so strange here! "Boys, what year is this?"

"2005," Elladan and Elrohir said in unison.

"Of what age?" Glorfindel asked looking fearful.

Both shrugged. "We stopped keeping up with the 'age' system ages ago. They don't even know how to measure years anymore. Someone arbitrarily decided to make this 2005, but get this, there was a year one, but before that they numbered the years backward! Naturally, they didn't number them that way at the time. They just recently decided to do that. It's so bloody confused no one really knows when it is anymore… though they think they know."

It was a couple hours that Erestor finally came back to the village and found the other three Elves. He was looking very upset and frightened. "I walked straight back the way I came. I know perfectly well where I was going and I never got there. There was nothing even remotely familiar. Nothing."

"Here, 'Stor, have an ale," Elrohir said.

"No, I do not want any intoxicating substances," Erestor protested. "I want to get back where I started and I want to get there now. Either I am crazy or you are, but I want to go home. Now."

"This is going to be difficult," Elladan muttered. "We need to talk about this with you, Erestor, but here is not the place. Come on with us."

Several hours later in a barn with a few horses as company the twins had managed to explain the situation as much as they could gather to Erestor. Glorfindel had managed to keep his mate from either exploding or falling apart completely. Actually, Erestor seemed more or less numb. That was actually more disconcerting than had he overreacted. "So… I – I can't get home at all? We are _stuck_ here? Not that I know where here is or how I got here."

"Ah, it's not really so bad 'Restor," Elrohir said stretching out on a pile of hay.

"It seems to me that there was just a little gather in Vairë's cloth and surely everything will be put right again soon," Elladan said comfortingly.

"A _little_ gather! How soon? How long do we have to wait? And how will we know?" Now Erestor was beginning to sound flustered and everyone felt much better. Things were already getting back to normal.

"Elladan, you know that people think you are strange when you say things like that, don't you?" Elrohir said, sounding slightly bitter.

"Then we are even, I think they are just as strange," Elladan retorted.

"Vairë's cloth… right. Like anyone even knows about that anymore. Have you met a single person who knows what that means in how many thousands of years?"

"What about you? You think I am living in the past, but you are profiting from it more than I am."

"Profiting, yes. That doesn't mean I still live it though. People think you are really carried away with all this stuff, 'Dan. People don't even believe in Elves anymore. They think we only do this between 9 and 5 and go home and take our ear-points off."

Elladan glared at his twin. "Just because they don't believe in what we are and what once was does not mean you have to stop believing in the Valar. There is more than just belief involved. We had proof in our day. Glorfindel dwelt in Námo's halls!"

"In our day… what is to say that anything of them still exists? Do you really think that the Valar would have let Arda turn into _this_? They were probably wiped out in the fifth age, along with most everything else of our lives and ways. They sent help before when Arda was failing… they have yet to step in now though and I think Arda is beyond help now."

"That was you just a moment ago saying how it wasn't so bad after all. Make up your mind and then you can join me at home," Elladan got up and walked out of the barn, saying, "if you two want to come with me you may as well, until everything is sorted again."

Glorfindel helped Erestor up and they followed Elladan to one of those colored armored carriages that Glorfindel had seenthe whole hill filled with earlier. Two of them, the same color and style sat side by side, these two did not have roofs as most of them did.

"How do you tell them apart?" Glorfindel asked, trying to deal with this new reality in stride.

Elladan reached over into the back of the other vehicle and fished around for a moment before producing what looked like a triangular scrap of brightly colored cloth which had a couple of thin ribbons attached to it. "One can always find these left in 'Ro's car. Besides, they all have their own number," he said pointing to the back of the carriage where a metal plaque had a combination of letters and numbers that meant nothing to either elder elf.

"What – what does it say?" Erestor said, attempting speech again and still sounding utterly drained.

"Nothing really. Get in, we have a bit of a drive ahead of us. Want to stop for dinner? You two must be hungry."

* * *

_Here we have a bit of a reverse on the old "two-girls-wander-into-Middle-earth" joke. I intend to keep this going, so you all are going to have to keep yelling at me until i promise to write andhave it done. I've been a bad writer lately and it's only just this week that i have been getting any writing done. I am still working on A Separate Chaos, know just what i want to do with it and everything, but it is just not coming as quickly at the moment for some reason. These things are like that. Keep prodding me, i will get back into form eventually._

_The title "A Stitch in Time," comes from the old adage "A stitch in time saves nine," but that really doesn't relate to the story, as it were. It is more a reference to Vaire the Valier who "weaved" all the stories of time in cloths that hung in the halls of Mandos (the Vala Lord Namo's realm)._


	2. A Place to Stay

Elladan decided to go for a restaurant that wouldn't make his two companions hide under the table, a country-style place that he and 'Ro went to often after "work," so the staff were at least used to the "Elf-look." A waitress who knew the twins came over to their table right away. "You have friends tonight but not your brother?" she asked conversationally.

"'Ro is being my evil twin tonight so I brought a couple of friends from _way_ back," Elladan replied, with a wink to Erestor and Glorfindel. "Bring us a pitcher of margarita and a bottle of cab to start, love?"

The girl went off to the kitchen and Elladan said to Glorfindel, "the margaritas are ours; I know 'Stor will get along better with the wine. Let me take care of everything." When the waitress returned with their drinks Elladan put in their order and noted that after consuming a glass of wine Erestor seemed to be doing a little better. The atmosphere here was at least something that he could handle, with oil lamps on the tables and a fire in a fireplace, wooden floors, walls, and furniture. Elladan figured it best to give Erestor a reprieve from his shock for a while, only the Valar knew how long he would have to deal with the modern world. The twins had often joked that Erestor was one Elf who never would have been able to adapt to the times, such as they were, and now it looked as if their joke had just come back to haunt them.

'Dan talked about a lot of the changes they had lived through over the ages, though he avoided too much talk about either the Middle-earth that once was or the world as it had become. He figured it best to give them a slower introduction than they had originally gotten. Elladan also spoke of what should happen _when_ the two got back to where they belonged. In truth, he was not nearly as confident of that as he made out to be, but he knew well enough that he needed to give them hope and assurance, especially Erestor, who was visibly weary, and not just from the wine.

After dinner, Elladan drove his two friends back to the home he shared with his twin, finding that the vehicle that matched his was still not in the garage. "Welcome to our humble abode," he said opening the door. "Not quite what we had once been used to. The neighborhood is too crowded and there aren't anywhere near enough trees. We are thinking of moving, we do a lot of that to avoid suspicion as it is. Anyway, that's the laundry through there, this is the den and bar. Just let me know if you want another drink, we keep it fully stocked, the stuff doesn't do much unless you drink a lot of it though, not like Dorwinion or anything."

Elladan led his companions up a flight of stairs. "The sitting room and dining room… which have not been touched except to dust since we moved in, the kitchen, which you are both completely welcome to, the bath – there's a half bath in the laundry as well – and the bedrooms: mine, 'Ro's, guest, this one's all yours if you don't mind sharing. Otherwise, the sofa downstairs pulls out as well. The back garden really only has the basics, the sort of plants that produce things helpful to us. There is no single remedy on the market today that has any use to us and, unfortunately, we have changed a bit over the ages. I only just got over a nasty cold last week, if you can believe that."

"No library?" Erestor said, seriously disappointed.

"No point anymore, 'Stor. I've only managed to keep a few books of ours. The one the Hobbits wrote is in the safe and no one knows a thing about its existence. _Someone,_ whose name I shall utter not without his presence, chatted with a young man about a hundred years ago and a lot of stuff has been published, most of it accurate, but you know how 'Ro gives details, so a lot of it is a bit… erroneous. You guys can read the stuff if you want, but you'd probably get a better laugh out of the films that were recently made. Though even I have to admit they were pretty good, all in all, even if 'Ro and I – and you two – weren't so much as mentioned."

"_Films_…? Elladan, I want to sleep, and please do not take this as offense, but I hope that the Valar have some compassion and let me wake on the road to Mithlond," Erestor said.

Elladan smiled vaguely, as if he didn't want to say he seriously doubted it. "A hot bath will help. Let me get you some lavender," Elladan said turning on the hot water and going out to the garden for a fresh sprig of the herb. Glorfindel followed him out to see the garden and, though it was far too sparse, he mostly approved of the choices of healing plants.

"I do not see athelas here," he said following twin 1 back into the washroom.

"You won't. There is none left, the plant no longer exists. I had some of the last seeds but they were lost about 300 years ago when we came back here. I nearly killed that ship-boy over it. I did manage to keep the telescope you gave me when I was a lad, though," he said to Erestor. "Still perfect and everything. I'll get your towels and something for you to wear. Let me know if you need anything else." Elladan went into his room and changed into "everyday" wear and went down to the game room with Glorfindel, who seemed a lot more interested in all the new things that had come along.

Elladan nearly turned on the TV, but decided to let that culture shock wait. With any luck the two recently displaced Eldar would be back where they belonged before they had to encounter television.

Glorfindel prodded 'Dan for information about the development of the world and Elladan gave him some answers, but he kept claiming that it would be impossible to even begin to cover everything in such a short time. Glorfindel gave Elladan a look as if to say that there was no need to play hopeful with him. "I know a bit more than Erestor does about how the Valar work. If there is a wrinkle in Vairë's cloth, as you say and I also think, it will take some time to work it out. We are not talking about a bed sheet, but all the events in time. It is rather large and this must be a rather large wrinkle. How many years would you say is between us?"

"There is no knowing at this point, Glor'," Elladan said. "So much happened in the fifth age, at the end of it. I think 'Ro has let much of it go, but it is still too near me and I do not really wish to go into detail about what happened. If you should have any recall of this time when you get back it could be a dangerous business to know what happens. After that, though, things just sort of stopped for a while, or so it felt. It was a long, long time before we encountered any civilized life. Actually, I am not certain that we have yet. You are probably better off not knowing too much about what is going on right now either."

"You can tell me nothing?" Glorfindel said sounding concerned.

"Unless the Valar have some other plan for those in Valinor I can not help but think that it will not be long enough before you are made aware. I doubt that it could be missed, even from the other side of a bent world. Up for another drink?" Elladan got up and fixed a couple of strong drinks that seemed to have a little more of an effect on him than on Glorfindel.

"And what of after you came upon these pseudo-civilized? What happened then?" Glorfindel asked curiously.

"They knew nothing of us, thought us to be gods. They had no knowledge of anything concerned with the world we knew, not any aspect of it was familiar to them. If we hadn't remained in the same lands we'd always known I would have thought we'd found ourselves in some alien place. Actually, beyond that, it's really been nothing but war after war, either amongst tribes or amongst countries and so on. And each time it has gotten worse. It was thought that Númenor was the second worst disaster that could ever happen, other than the fall of Beleriand. That's nothing compared to what has gone on since. The world of Men is… inconceivable really." Elladan was not looking at his old friend, but staring into the now empty glass that he still held onto.

About then a noise of slight rumbling combined with a buzz could be heard. Glorfindel started but Elladan did not seem to react. "It's just 'Ro coming in. That's the garage door."

Sure enough, Elrohir appeared only a moment later. "I'm sorry, 'Dan," was his greeting to his brother.

Elladan just shook his head. "Forget it, we've been through far too much to worry about petty things now."

Elrohir mixed himself one of the drinks that Elladan had finished and handed another to Glorfindel as well. "Hope you are enjoying all the modern luxuries, mellon-nîn," he said to the Vanya lord.

"Seems interesting here, if not… overwhelming," he said with a look toward Elladan. Elladan really didn't notice it and it was difficult to tell if he was absorbed in his thoughts, sleepy, or if those drinks were stronger than they seemed. Actually both twins looked like they needed their rest, surely this day had been a trial for them as well, and so Glorfindel stood up and said, "I think perhaps I had best check on Erestor. Thank you, both of you, for keeping us through this."

"We'd do anything for you two, Glor', as you always did for us," Elrohir said sincerely. "Are you sharing the guest room?"

Glorfindel nodded. "There should be no trouble with that. We are already surprise guests, after all. Get some rest, boys."

After Glorfindel had gone up the stairs, Elrohir went for another drink and said to Elladan, "are they seriously going to share? They had detested one another for a thousand years."

'Dan shrugged as if he really wasn't paying any attention.

"You aren't doing yourself any good, 'Dan. We have been all over, there is no finding it, not anymore. You know it as well as I do. When all was sundered, something irreparable happened. This is our future, it's not the life we had, I know, and I certainly preferred that too. But we might as well make the best of it."

"I know, Elrohir. More and more I just do not understand the world. I am starting to feel so lost, like I am the one who knows nothing. There are just so many times, still, even after all these ages, when I get to thinking about ada and nana and want so much to see them again."

"I am sorry for what I said earlier, Elladan. You were right. And I miss ada and nana, too. Seeing Glor and Ere again reminded of them again. They wouldn't be here if there wasn't something left of the Valar, and maybe it means we can still find a way to get home too."

"I don't know, 'Ro. I think it may be too late for us. Mayhap we should have gone when we had the chance." Elladan was looking a bit distant again, staring at his empty glass.

"Come on," 'Ro said, taking the glass in his brother's hand and filling it again. "Don't go fading on me now, not after all this. I know I wanted to stay and help the Mortals, as did you. Guess we got cocky after that fight with Sauron, huh?"

Elladan smiled slightly, sipping at his drink. Elrohir always made those things a lot stronger than he himself did. "I guess we did at that. Did you know that they have actually found some Hobbit remains?"

"Think they'll find anything else?" Elrohir said, his interest piqued.

"I couldn't believe anything at all of them survived after what happened, I seriously doubt anything else did. In a way, I hope not. Sometimes I think it would be better if all that remained a favorite myth of the 'nerds,'" 'Dan said with a pointed look at Elrohir.

"What?" his twin cried, raising his hands as if to declare his innocence.

"Well, the whole thing _is_ your fault. Stems right back to you."

"The lad was curious about my ears. He reminded me of Estel. Besides, he never mentioned me to anyone else."

"You are in the bloody book, with me. Do you know how weird it is when someone knows that the name Elladan isn't actually French or Welsh or any of the other things we've claimed to be over the years, but comes from what they deem a modern fantasy novel? Of course you do!"

"Been a lot funner since then, though, hasn't it?" Elrohir said with a smirk.

"More fun," Elladan corrected with a bit of a pout. "And actually I preferred being ostracized for being a pointy-eared freak than being popular for being a pointy-eared freak."

"Well, I'm off to bed, gwador-nîn. I intend to sleep in, so kindly don't wake me?" Elrohir said.

Elladan just nodded.

"You should have some sleep too, 'Dan," Elrohir added, more gently this time.

Elladan nodded again, but got up and followed his brother. He knew he needed rest, for who knew what the dawn would see?


	3. World Asunder

Elladan took his glass up to the kitchen and turning out into the hallway to his bedroom, he saw Elrohir standing outside his own door staring at the guestroom door. Elrohir motioned to his brother to be quiet but to look for himself. Elladan's brows were knit in confusion at first, then in outright surprise when he looked to see that the door had been left open just a crack and… were Ere' and Glor' actually sound asleep in each other's arms or had he had too much to drink?

"When did that happen?" Elladan breathed in astonishment.

Elrohir shrugged. "Guess we've missed a lot, or forgotten a lot," he whispered. "Might have to mention that if they're still here in the morning."

"I really don't think they will be going anywhere any time soon, but I wouldn't question it myself," Elladan said cautiously.

"That's because you've never had the -" Elrohir started, but his twin cut him off rather quickly.

"_Identical_ twins, 'Ro…. 'Night!"

The next morning Elladan woke rather earlier than his brother, as usual, and went to sit in the "garden" for a while before the world caught up with him. On his way out he noticed that there were still two other Elves in their guest room, still snuggled together. Elladan just shook his head and went out through the kitchen. It seemed that for as many "culture shocks" as Glor' and Ere' were likely to get, he and 'Ro might experience a few as well. It had been a _very_ long time.

Once the rest of the world around him started to make its presence known again, 'Dan came back in and started to work on breakfast. Before long the smell of fresh food had woken the other three Elves and Elrohir made his way into the kitchen, followed shortly by Glorfindel, then a rather disconcerted but resigned looking Erestor.

After downing a cup of coffee (which neither Glorfindel nor Erestor cared for even slightly after a first taste), Elrohir went into the dining room and disappeared behind a half-wall momentarily. Just as he came back into the kitchen, the strangest sounds started coming from the other room. Glorfindel looked perplexed and Erestor looked terrified. Elladan and Elrohir seemed to be enjoying it quite a bit though. To the ears of the recently arrived Eldar, it sounded like an orc-horde in a cacophony of death-throes. Then there were words, or they supposed them to be words of some sort, neither Glor' nor Ere' understood them, though 'Dan and 'Ro appeared to. There were some surprisingly melodious and near-Elven sounds as well and all in all the elder two of four were able to get along with the new "music," for the most part. They only hoped that such noise was not the only music to be offered in the new days.

Breakfast made by Elladan was a welcome refreshment of sweet, fresh fruits and what resembled ornate lembas, which the twins said were now called pizelles, though Elladan insisted that no one else had his recipe. Elladan assured Erestor and Glorfindel that everything he cooked with was fresh and, moreover, organic. The two weren't sure just why his ingredients wouldn't be organic and fresh, but then, neither of them had set foot in a grocery store as yet. It was 'Dan's hope that they would not have to endure that. When he thought of how tired he sometimes felt, especially when he thought that nearly every last thing in the world was no longer what it once was, Elladan was more than sympathetic to his father's dearest friends.

After breakfast it was agreed that since there was no way of knowing how long a visit it would be, Glorfindel and Erestor should take the precaution of dressing in more of what would be considered "normal" attire. Robes, tunics, and leggings weren't going to go over too well in the "real" world. It was easy for the twins to share some things with Erestor as he was closer to their build if not a little slighter, but as Glor' was a bit taller and broader shouldered, that was something different.

"What about this stuff, 'Dan?" Elrohir asked pointing to some items far at the back of Elladan's closet.

Elladan's expression turned vacant and slightly melancholy for a moment and he shook his head against the idea, eyes lightly shut. He knew there was no way he could ever hide anything in his eyes from his twin and he felt as if even the most dim-witted of mortals could see outwardly what had just then rematerialized internally.

"Elladan… he's not coming back," Elrohir said. He'd hoped that perhaps his brother would be ready at long last to move on from what never should have been in the first place.

The look 'Dan gave him was first hurt, but suddenly those grey eyes flashed with anger aimed directly at his twin, before he turned and walked out of the house. Glorfindel and Erestor just glanced at each other in confusion, but Erestor knew that look Elladan had worn all too well and followed the elder twin out and toward the end of the street. He knew not where they were headed, and Elladan didn't know he was leading, but Erestor followed nonetheless, unwilling to let his former pupil and apprentice suffer in silence.

Erestor followed until he saw the twin sitting on a low branch that reached out over a low ditch that had a trickle of water through it. Taking it upon himself, Erestor made himself comfortable on the branch next to the Peredhil. There were a few quiet moments as Erestor gave Elladan time to decide what he would say, using the time to look around him at the open field beyond the ditch. A ring of about 6 or 7 _ereg_ shrubs were at the middle and down a slope there was a narrow strip of trees before another, steeper slope, and a road going down into a valley. The road was busy with many armored carriages and Erestor wondered if the world had grown so terrible that one dared not to walk or even go on horseback.

"Remember the Mitheithel?" Elladan said, in soft Elven voice.

"Aye, naturally," Erestor responded.

Elladan just pointed at the trickle of water in front of them. "Surprising even that's left." Elladan was quiet, much quieter than Erestor could remember either twin ever being, even in their sleep. "No one even knows what it is, or rather _was_. The world is utterly changed, Ere', utterly. You would never recognize it, it is grown huge and split asunder." Elladan's voice dropped even lower. "I do no longer think that there is a Narrow Way to the West."

Erestor didn't say anything right away. The despondent sound in Elladan's voice rather made him forget his own worries about that "wrinkle" in Vairë's cloth and it was disconcerting. "Who was your brother talking about?" Erestor said gently.

Elladan's chest was virtually heaving. He could barely talk even as he forced out the words, "the only one I ever loved." His voice and tears broke together.

"_Pen-neth…. Im iston, pen-neth_," Erestor soothed, opening his arms and letting Elladan weep on his shoulder. Neither twin had been so upset since their nana left, and who knew how many ages ago that was! Once Elladan had calmed down enough Erestor asked softly, "Is Elrohir right?" He knew Elladan wouldn't want to be asked that question, especially not at that moment, but it was important for him to heed all the same.

Elladan pulled back and started to look defensive but he couldn't honestly manage it and replied, "No… I – I don't… know."

"Tell me what happened?" Erestor offered.

Elladan slipped off the branch in favor of sitting on the ground and hugging his knees to him as he leaned against the tree. "That's just it, Ere'… no one knows. He's… lost. That's all they said and they don't know any more than that and they can't spend the man-power to find…." Elladan was quiet for a long moment, then shouted, "Damn them!"

* * *

"Sorry about that, Glor'," Elrohir said, "you likely remember my brother as the reasonable one of the two of us."

"Actually I seem to recall that both of you were rather… unmanageable," Glorfindel said. "I have to say, though, you both seem to be quite changed over the years."

"Why not, nothing else has stayed the same. Except for the stars, interestingly. They are just as you'd remember them, when you can see them, that is."

"So what exactly was it that upset Elladan just then?" Glorfindel said, always one to get right to the point.

Elrohir shook his head. "He still has some of Alec's clothes, I figured they might fit you a bit better than our stuff. He just can't let go, though. I warned him about this kind of thing, but he wouldn't listen to me and went and fell in love with a Mortal… just like 'Wen."

"Then this Alec died?" Glor' asked, understanding how Elladan must feel.

Elrohir shrugged. "If you want my opinion, they found out and killed him. They can cover things like that without batting a lash. He was almost through with his time in the service when the war broke out and he was called up. 'Lec didn't have any family to speak of so it was 'Dan who they told that he was 'lost' – which doesn't necessarily mean dead, but could mean captured or defected or something. Unaccounted for, basically. I guess 'Dan really did love the guy because he almost completely broke when he heard."

To Glorfindel, there were a lot of unanswered questions but he knew better than to push. He was rather surprised that one of the twins had found such a love, neither of them had ever had much time for such pursuits when they were in Imladris, but with so many more years having passed, Glor' guessed it was inevitable. "He's lucky he hasn't faded, unless even love has changed," Glorfindel said.

"It has, but not much for us. I still don't really know anything of it, to be honest. And, Glor'," Elrohir said solemnly, "I am worried that he is beginning to fade, albeit slowly."

* * *

_ereg - holly_

_Mitheithel - a river in Rhuadar (aka Hoarwell)_

_pen-neth - little one_

_im iston - i know (i understand)_


	4. tapestryoftime exe

Elladan sat quietly with Erestor for a long while in the shade. The sun had risen high and the heat of the day was making itself known with tyrannical might. Elladan loosened his shirt, wishing he'd had the wits to grab a bottle of water in his distraught haste. Erestor mopped at his brow and said incredulously, "from where does this heat come? I haven't been this overheated since…."

"Your last tumble with Glor'?" Elladan mischievously supplied.

Erestor fixed him with an obdurate look. "Whatever would give you such an idea?"

Elladan grinned despite himself, "only the fact that the two of you shared a room last night whereas you never before could be within a league of one another without arguing."

"We still argue, frequently," Erestor said petulantly.

Elladan just smirked. "It's called Global Warming," he said after a moment.

"Glow ball?" Erestor asked. "Does that refer to anor or ithil, perhaps? Or is it a palantir?"

"Global, one word. Global refers to the earth. Actually, it's the warming bit that's from the sun."

"Naturally it is, what else would anor do?" Erestor said perplexed.

"Only it is warming too much," Elladan explained. "The Ekkaia is being worn down, and so quickly." Elladan sounded none too happy about it.

Erestor still didn't look very enlightened.

"Man's industry is at fault. That vehicle I brought you home in, the oven I cooked breakfast on, the lights in the house, and so much more, things I couldn't explain to you in a lifetime. All these things use energy and by turn release gases that breakdown the Encircling Seas. Well, they say atmosphere or 'ozone' layer now, but it is no different."

Erestor thought of all the armored carriages he'd seen already in the day that he had been there. "But life cannot thrive without the Encircling Sea or Ilmen or Vista, they are part of the Song, without them we should all be sucked into the Void or roasted by anor or some such."

Elladan merely nodded.

"You are saying that Man is willingly destroying Arda?" Erestor asked incredulously.

Again Elladan nodded. "Some don't even believe it's true, they think it's all a lie and that nothing is wrong. Ere', if you would see what is become of Arda…. And she is rising up against her oppressors in wrath. You remember what became of Beleriand?"

It was Erestor's turn to nod solemnly.

"That is what earth is doing now. She is furious with this abuse Man has inflicted and will no longer abide it. It has only just begun. I do not wish to know what will happen in the future. It is guaranteed to be worse than the ending of the Fifth Age."

Erestor wished to know what Elladan referred to regarding the Fifth Age, but thought that since he was, or rather had been, taking steps to leave Middle-earth already, perhaps he should let it go. Clearly it upset Elladan, and the elder twin did not seem to need anything more to draw him down. Sometimes Erestor's diplomatic mind spared him from a lot of difficulty. "So, tell me, pen-neth, when did you and your brother realize your… inclinations?"

Elladan might have fallen over in sudden laughter if not for Erestor on one side of him and the tree on the other. "I did, Ro' didn't. He is only inclined the other way, and very the other way, might I add. Do you remember what daerada was like after daernana left him?"

Erestor looked at his companion for a long moment before saying, "no, I am supposed to be going along with your daernana."

"You were, but then you – oh… nevermind," Elladan said, remember that Ere' and Glor' were with because of some strange glitch in time. If Vairë had gone digital, Elladan could just picture her enormous computer monitor with a pop-up reading, _"tapestryoftime.exe has encountered an error and needs to close. Do you wish to report this error?" _and the Vala herself swearing and slamming down the mouse. "Anyway, Ere', you might well enlighten me about you and Glor'… when did that happen!"

"At your little brother's coronation," Erestor said slightly awkwardly. "But you two were there… in fact, it was all your fault."

Elladan thought for a long while. "It's been a very, very long time. I seem to recall the two of you being a bit more cordial to one another just before you were to leave, but… well, it hadn't been so for so long that I must just associate that _tempest_ with the two of you still."

Erestor grinned, "and don't stop associating it thusly."

Both Elves heard light steps back beyond the ridge. "Dan?" Elrohir called.

"Here, Ro', under the chestnuts," Elladan replied with a sigh. How many thousands of years had it been, and he still could not learn to keep a grudge against his twin for more than a few hours.

"I'm sorry, 'Dan… again. I've been a right ass these last few days. Wanna' spar? I'll let you win."

"Shut up, idiot brother," Elladan muttered, hugging his identical sibling.

"I really am sorry, bro. You know I don't mean to say anything to hurt you."

"I know, you are just an idiot," Elladan replied, releasing the ever so slightly younger Elf.

"Pardon, young Lords," Glorfindel, having followed Elrohir out, "but may I pose a question?"

"You just do not know when to be silent do you?" Erestor growled. "Whatever it is, it can wait."

Glorfindel glared at Erestor indignantly. "Well, there is something here that I do not understand and I would like an answer, if you do not mind it all, _my_ good Councilor."

Erestor huffed at the insinuation. "That can be changed very quickly!"

Glorfindel was about to offer a retort but Elladan cut him off. "Listen, let's go home, all right? If anyone sees Glory dressed like that they'll start wondering."

"Dressed like _what_?" the Elda demanded, still feeling a bit irritated. "I don't see what's wrong with a tunic and leggings. You lads looked fine yesterday, although everyone around you seemed to be going about in under garments. And what exactly are these _leggings_ that my… Erestor is wearing?"

"They're shorts, Glory, it's how everyone dresses in this weather," Elrohir supplied.

"It's not that I mind the view…," Glorfindel said contemplatively, "but I am not sure I want everyone sharing it." Erestor swatted Glor' a little more forcefully than the Elda expected. "I mean, you are always so much more comfortable in your robes, _mela_…." he said, rubbing at his now sore arm.

When they returned to the house Elladan prepared lunch, mostly as a way of settling himself. Afterward he consented to let Glorfindel dress from what was left of Alec's wardrobe, but only with the condition that he not wear one of the outfits exactly the way his lover had, and only temporarily. There was nothing for it, they would have to take Glor' and Ere' out into the world, at least long enough to get them properly attired.


	5. Shopping!

At least the recent arrivals weren't unfamiliar with the car ride, or in a state of shock as they were the day before. Clearly, Erestor still wasn't over fond of being in a vehicle which had no obvious means of conveyance, how a carriage could travel without being drawn was over his head. Glorfindel, as usual, was a little proactive, asking just how they were going about at such speeds, which seemed to be another unnerving factor for Erestor. Elrohir explained as simply as he could, likening the process of internal combustion to Mithrandir's fireworks (except that those were external combustion), which Elladan mentioned were commonplace now.

Erestor blanched slightly. "So you are using fire as a means of propulsion? Isn't that extremely dangerous?"

The twins nodded in synchronicity. "But then again, traveling at these speeds in a great steel cage," Elrohir added nonchalantly from the driver's seat. At least he'd had the consideration to put the top up before taking off at frightening velocities.

Neither twin knew exactly what to expect when they parked outside the mall, and they wondered if maybe they should give their companions some kind of warning or crash course or something. Elladan figured it should be safe as long as they were kept away from some of the edgier stores, but it was Elrohir's opinion that maybe that was exactly where they should go; although it might be a bit more of a trial for Glorfindel and especially Erestor, their antediluvian behaviors, long silky hair, and pointed ears would probably be a lot more acceptable to the 'Goth' crowd than for soccer-mom mall shoppers.

And so, goth it was, at least to start with. Glorfindel stood staring in fright at the dark storefront with strange, loud sounds emanating from it. It seemed to him more like a portal to Mordor than any tailor's shop. Ironically, Erestor didn't seem to have any qualms at all and followed Elrohir in. Elladan decided that maybe it would be best to split up so that they could get this done with as soon as possible and not have to expose their friends to the outside world more than necessary.

Elrohir turned to look over Erestor with a critical eye, as if he hadn't known the Elf all his life, and then strode purposefully across the shop. Erestor, curiosity piqued, went along. Elrohir already had several items slung over his arm and was quickly gathering more and filling up the other arm as well. Erestor tagged along quietly, taking in this culture with its somewhat frightening symbols and imagery. Normally he would have been reeling with confusion and fear of such a place, but his thirst for knowledge had kicked in rather strongly, causing the Noldo to throw caution to the wind, even in this macabre place.

Meanwhile, Elladan was walking through the mall with Glorfindel, thankful that it was rather empty for a weekday afternoon. Elladan was finding himself to be a little melancholy, he could still smell Alec on the clothes Glor' was wearing.

"Pen-neth?" Glorfindel said quietly, interrupting 'Dan's thoughts. It didn't take one of the Wise to deduce that the peredhel twin was feeling bleak.

"I'm alright," Elladan said unenthusiastically. He knew already where they needed to go and wasn't looking forward to it.

"I didn't ask if you were, but since I can tell that you are not, I will pretend that you didn't answer at all," Glorfindel said with an idiotic smile, intended to lighten Elladan's mood.

It did succeed in making 'Dan smile, if but wanly. "Do you like what you are wearing?" he asked, changing the subject.

Glorfindel nodded. "He certainly has good taste," Glor' remarked, making it a point to keep the reference in the present tense.

"Yep," Elladan said, trying to said off-hand, despite the knife that was twisting about in his heart. "Well, there's only one place he shopped, so let's head there. I think you'll like it better than the goth shop."

"The _what_ shop?" Glorfindel said in alarm, horrified that Elrohir and Erestor had gone in there willingly.

"Oh, no, it doesn't have anything to do with enemies here," Elladan quickly explained. "Well, originally I suppose it did, but today the reference is to counterculture, but believe me, you do _not_ want to be mainstream."

Glorfindel was still slightly confused as Elladan turned in to a much brighter shop than the one he'd left Erestor to, but he found it quite enjoyable to look through the racks of garments and find styles that suited him.

Half an hour later both groups met up laden with two new wardrobes. Elladan insisted upon getting everyone a bottle of water before leaving, saying that the recycled air in malls was worse than the polluted air outside and hydration was the only defense. Elrohir just rolled his eyes, thinking his brother was growing more paranoid all the time.

On the way out of the mall they passed the goth shop again and Glorfindel asked, "if you call this goth, what do you call the shop of the tailor we were in?"

Elrohir glanced at the bags his brother was carrying and guessed he should have known they'd have gone there. "This is goth, that was gay," he said, earning a teasing shove from Elladan. The other two Elves had no notion what the joke was.

"Thank god Marvin wasn't working," Elladan muttered as they walked through the parking lot, "I probably would have given that asshole a black eye."

"You know you had no reason to be jealous of that fruit, right? Marvin, I mean," Elrohir said, trying to lighten his brother's mood much as Glorfindel had instinctively done. "You are much better looking and no where near as queeny, you are the least queeny queer I know."

"Fine, I guess I could always just give you a black eye then," Elladan said threateningly, though it was just a constant joke between them and had been for years.

"Nah, need to look hot for Friday night," Elrohir said, shaking one of his shopping bags. "Speaking of which… please tell me you are going to be playing?"

Elladan gave his brother a "don't start" look as he popped the trunk and shoved Elrohir's bags in for him. "I don't know, 'Ro. If I had to play right now I'd say no. Maybe by then I'll be more into it."

"You need to be into it. I need you up there. I really do not want to have to call Dave again. C'mon, bro."

"We'll see…. Hey!" Elladan shouted as Elrohir took the keys out of his hand and sat himself in the driver's seat. "This is my car, remember? No panties decorating the back seat."

"No, it… is yours," Elrohir said, looking at the key ring. "Damn, why did we decide to get matching cars again?"

"You decided that, not me, and it's not my fault if you can't remember the difference between our license plate numbers. And anyway, are you sure that we should leave Glor' and Ere' alone all night Friday… assuming they're still here?"

"What is the matter with leaving us alone for a night," Glorfindel demanded to know. "We are not elflings."

The twins glanced at each other, thinking that with their knowledge of this world, they might as well be infants.

"Maybe they could come to the show," Elrohir suggested.

"That can't be a good idea," Elladan said, "these two, in a bar? For one of our shows? No way."

"See, you said 'our' – now you have to play," Elrohir said triumphantly. "And yeah, I think they should come. They survived the mall, the bar will be no problem. There were taverns all over Arda."

"Not with rock bands," Elladan said skeptically.

"We _are_ present," Erestor reminded them. "Now, how about explaining what you are talking about and we will decide for ourselves?"

Elladan sighed and slipped in a CD. "Alright, the best way for me to explain it is to just let you listen to our music yourselves. Friday night we are playing in a bar, a tavern that is, which doesn't serve food and doesn't let rooms for a night, its only purpose is to serve alcoholic drinks and act as a venue for bands that aren't known enough to play elsewhere or just enjoying playing to smaller audiences. This music is sort of a blend of what you both heard while shopping with us." With a touch, the car was filled with sound for the rest of the ride home, only stopping when Elladan pulled into the garage and shut off the car.

Erestor and Glorfindel were quiet for a moment, looking at one another, then Erestor said, "We'll go with you."


	6. Grilling

Through the week that followed their arrival, it was amazing just how receptive to modern culture Glorfindel and Erestor had become. Even Erestor, for as petrified as he was at first, was becoming quiet used to things, and was ever more inquisitive.

Elladan was still a bit concerned that should they find themselves returned to their rightful places in Middle-earth, too much knowledge of arda's future could have potentially disastrous negative effects. Still, Elrohir initiated the TV test and aside from being bored to tears, neither of the elder Eldar was too fazed. Elrohir figured that perhaps those two had lived through worse things than MASH re-runs after all. Yet, he still made it a point to avoid the news.

By the time Friday came around, even Elladan was a bit more relaxed about taking Glor' and Ere' to the show. Although, he still had some reservations about playing. Friday afternoon found Elladan cooking lunch and Glorfindel attempting to be helpful in the kitchen while his lover napped in the sun like a cat.

"_So_, why have you not felt up to performing?" Glorfindel asked casually, slipping in the question as he was searching the herb cupboard for rosemary.

Elladan peered sideways at Glorfindel, knowing he had intended to drag this out of him all along. "It's how I met Alec. I just haven't truly wanted to play since he went missing."

"That's understandable," Glorfindel said sympathetically. "Tell me, though – would he put up with that?"

Elladan put down the spatula he was using to sauté vegetables with and leaned against the counter, resting his forehead against the cupboard in front of him. This was something that he had avoided thinking about for quite some while. He knew the answer, but it had been so much easier not to face it. "Alee would hate it, Glor'," he whispered.

"Elladan, wherever he might be, he would not want to see you changed by his absence. If anything ever happened to me… again, and Erestor stopped being stuck-up and persnickety and _pedantic_ and ostentatious and verbose and _dour_… well, you know where I am going with this. He loves you for who you are."

Elladan sighed deeply, forcing himself to turn back to the veggies that were protesting his negligence. "He used to say that all the time. He said he loved everything about me."

"Were you ever able to – you know," Glorfindel asked curiously, tapping his temple.

"I never tried. I haven't done that in ages to anybody but 'Ro," Elladan replied, surprising himself by being so composed. "But, if you mean can I 'sense' him, I used to be able to. Until he went missing. Now, I just can't tell. It doesn't feel the same as it did when 'Wen passed away…. I don't know. I don't really want to talk about it."

Glorfindel smiled slightly, but it was not a cheerful smile. He had the feeling that Elrohir's concern that Elladan's grief could overwhelm him might not be too inaccurate. "_Im iston_," the Elda whispered, taking the frying pan off the burner, as Elladan's mind just was not on the cooking, and he tried to blow out the flame under the grillwork. Unexpectedly, Elladan doubled up in laughter.

"Stop!" Elladan cried between his laughter. "Here, you turn this knob, like so. Gods… you never could be trusted in the kitchen."

"Careful, there, Glor'," Elrohir said, showing up just as lunch was ready, a trick he had honed to perfection through the years, "you really don't want to get him angry in the kitchen. Last time someone did that they ended up with a knife under their ribs."

"That was 300 years ago and you still won't leave off it," Elladan moaned.

"No, I won't, because I told you that bastard was mine," Elrohir retorted.

"Yours, but you couldn't -"

Glorfindel shook his head, it was true, some things never changed. "Lads, let us eat, shall we? I do not wish to put off a meal due to you two bickering," pled the Golden Lord as he walked out to stir his drowsing mate.

The twins just looked at each other, wondering how much had changed over the years.

"You decided yet?" Elrohir asked cautiously, sitting down at the kitchen table.

Elladan nodded silently, dishing out the meal he had created to settle himself. Ironically, the rule was that the better Elladan's cooking was, the lower he was feeling. Cooking had become therapy for the Peredhil twin. "Yeah, I'm gonna play," he said after a minute.

Elrohir returned the silent nod in approval. For two years he had been tempted to remind Elladan that Alec would have hated him quitting playing, but he had been, not entirely incorrectly, afraid that his twin might have his head for saying something like that. So Elrohir thought it best to contain his excitement and change the subject, lest 'Dan back out again. "Can you believe those two want to come with us?"

"For only having been here a few days, I am a little bit concerned by how easily they have adapted," Elladan said. He was going to say more but the two in question were entering the kitchen.

"You want to get some practice in before we start getting ready?" Elrohir asked his twin.

Elladan gave him an 'are you serious?' expression. "When is the last time I actually needed to practice?" he asked. "Just because I'm better than you are…."

Elrohir rolled his eyes skyward. "I am not debating that, I just wondered if you actually remembered the line-up. It has been a while, you know?"

"Just because I haven't played doesn't mean I haven't been there." Elladan decided not to belabor his point though.

"All right then. So, Glor', Ere'… what has you guys so interested in joining us? We'd have thought that this whole thing would be way too much to take, yet it hasn't even been a week and you're dressing like us and into our music…."

Elladan wanted to smack his brother. He had intended not to mention anything, but clearly Elrohir had no concept of what things could be like if the elder two returned to Arda and started spouting off about the modern world. As if it wasn't bad enough that there were things they couldn't avoid encountering just in the house, right there in the kitchen, even – the box that cooks without fire, the bigger box that scrubs dishes, the even bigger box that keeps food cold without ice.

Glorfindel and Erestor exchanged glances and just shrugged. "You lads seem to be having some fun with all of this," Glorfindel said. "We kind of thought we might as well."

Elladan and Elrohir now exchanged looks. "Ok, just don't say we didn't warn you. We'll be leaving here around 8, so be ready," Elladan said. "I'm going to go center for a while, and dinner will be at 6, so that should leave _you_ plenty of time?" Elladan asked, gesturing toward his brother.

"Could you make it 5:30?" Elrohir asked, ducking 'Dan's backhand just in time.


	7. The Show Must Go On

It was exactly 9:00 PM when Elrohir strode through the door of the bar, six-string slung across his back, looking like a warrior at work, proclaiming his presence without so much as a word. He might as well have owned the place – not that he couldn't if he wanted to. He was closely followed by Elladan, carrying his electric bass and looking equally deadly. Elladan, however, stayed closer to Glor' and Ere', wary of them getting lost, which wasn't hard to do. He shook hands and greeted a few people whose faces were familiar to the place, then leaned across the bar to speak to the owner of the establishment.

"Well, Jason, as I am sure you can tell, here we are," he said with a slight grin. Elrohir was all focus on these nights and rarely bothered even saying hello to anyone until he was set up, tuned, and ready to play. Elladan was the one to hang out and talk to their friends, acquaintances, and patrons, then tune up, usually while still chatting with people. "Listen, I have a couple of friends here tonight, the guys with the long hair. They are not from this country, so, if you could just keep an eye their way, I'd really be grateful," Elladan said. It was little secret that illegal activity tended to run high in such places, there was little that could be done about it. Still, Glorfindel on crystal meth was not worth contemplating.

Jason, the owner, nodded his understanding, the place was already rather noisy and the fewer words said the better. "Playing?" he asked curiously, noting that Elladan was carrying a guitar case.

'Dan nodded. "Yeah… special show tonight," he said, not elaborating. He had something in mind though. Maybe it was time for closure after all.

Jason dipped under the bar and came back up with four bottles, popping the tops off each. "On the house," he said, coming out from behind the bar and ushering the three over to the table closest the "stage." "Hello, 'Ro," he said to Elrohir, who only raised his head slightly and nodded.

"In the zone," Elladan laughed. "Well, I guess I better help him or he won't talk to anyone before we get started. After I have a drink, that is," he said, sitting down with Glor' and Ere', who were so far silent.

"This is very much like that tavern in Minas Tirith, if a bit noisier, but that seems the norm here," Glorfindel remarked. "I'd have thought this sort of place would have changed dramatically as well."

"Some aspects have, trust me," Elladan said. "Hey!" Elladan jumped up and went to hug a woman who had just entered the room. "'Vin, these are old friends of ours, Fin' and Stor'," he said, going for nicknames that were less likely to be recognized as Middle-earth in origin. "Guys, this is Lavinia, a dear friend of mine. Come on, sit down, Ro' won't be talking to anyone till he's done."

"Pleasure," Lavinia said genuinely, shaking hands with the other two. "You playing?" she asked, pointing to the bass Elrohir was setting up.

Elladan laughed, "Maybe I better put a sign around my neck before I have to answer this too many more times, but, yeah, I am gonna play tonight. I guess it's time for me to do this again, you know?"

"Yeah, I do," she said sincerely. There was a bittersweet look in her eyes as she smiled gently.

"How's he doing?" Elladan asked.

Lavinia shrugged. "It's just a day by day thing right now, Dan. He was doing pretty well today though."

"I should stop over to the hospice after work tomorrow night, do you think?"

"Sure, I'm sure he's getting sick of just seeing me come in," Lavinia said, aiming for humor and just slightly off the mark.

"He couldn't, I know how much he loves you," Elladan said honestly. "You never found out who made that donation?" Elladan asked.

Lavinia just shook her head. "I don't know anybody with that kind of money, and only a handful of people know about his condition. Unless it was one of his doctors or something, I don't know. He has the best care money can buy though, and whoever found it in them to provide that… I hope they are the happiest person alive, they certainly deserve to be."

Elladan only smiled. "You deserve to be, too, hon'."

"You know, Danny, it sounds strange, but sometimes I am. When he's having a good day and I see that smile of his, sometimes it's like _it_ doesn't even exist, and I am actually happy."

"I am sure that's exactly what he wants," Elladan said. "I'm playing tonight because I realized, with a little help…" he said glancing at Glorfindel, "that 'Lec would be pissed at me for giving this up because he's gone." Elladan could see Lavinia's eyes tear up even in the dim light and hugged her. "Love every moment, no matter if it's good or bad," he whispered.

"I do," she whispered as he pulled back and swiped at her eyes. "Well, you have a good show tonight, huh? I'll be here getting drunk," she said forcing a smile.

"Want a ride home after?" Elladan asked.

"We'll see," Lavinia said, heading over to the bar.

Elladan said nothing but shook his head silently. "Truly sad," he said to himself, then turned to give a margin of explanation to his friends. "They are so in love, and she's had to live with the knowledge for years that he's going die slowly."

Erestor had sat by listening to the conversation. "It sounds like a familiar story," he said. Erestor had always been one of Arwen's few unbiased confidantes in Imladris and knew that she had accepted the condition of Mortality long before anyone even knew she had contemplated it. "Do you mean to say that she is…," he trailed off, pointing to his ear-points.

Elladan chuckled and said, "nope, just the four of us… that I know of, though I would seriously doubt any others. No, but her partner does refer to her as his 'immortal beloved.' I guess in his eyes, she might as well be immortal. He's been sick as long as I've known them. That's real true love right there, you know. So bittersweet." Elladan sighed deeply. "Damn, well, best help my brother, huh? He can't set everything up all by himself. We'll be right around here, in and out for a bit, if you two need anything. Oh… and do _not_ take anything offered to you, alright? Nothing whatsoever, no matter how harmless it seems. Trust me on this."

Glor' and Ere' both nodded, but Erestor said aside to Glorfindel, "what can he possibly be worried about?"

"Who knows… they both seem to forget that we have lived several ages and are more than capable of taking care of ourselves," Glorfindel said, taking a sip of beer, finding he was developing a taste for the particular brew.

"Taking care of each other, too," Erestor said, a certain glint in his eyes.

"Hm… really now?" Glor' purred mischievously, nibbling lightly on his lover's ear lobe.

"Cut it out, we are in public, you know," Erestor hissed, not really convincingly though, as he was on his way to returning the kiss.

Just then, someone across the room loudly exclaimed, "Gaud-dam! See, this is the shit I am sick of when I come here to enjoy a game, ya know?" The offended young man strode across the bar to stand at the side of the table where Glor' and Ere' were seated and glared accusingly at them. "Don't you fags have your own damn clubs to get it on in?"

Having spent the past week in company of the twins, Glorfindel quickly picked up on the fact that this society wasn't entirely friendly about what they termed being "gay." Although the twins joked about it, it was obvious that there was much negativity in the world at large toward those like Elladan, Erestor, and himself. Even despite having had only a week to pick up on these things, Glorfindel knew instinctively when he was being insulted and had never in his born or _re_-born days put up with it.

"I apologize," Glorfindel said, standing up and making it a point to rise to his full height. "I really don't think I heard you properly." It was an intimidating sight to see.

The agitator looked about to reconsider when he saw just how physical Glorfindel really was, but the attention now focused on his next move was a motivator in a rather stupid decision. "I said, you oughta leave, faggot."

"Why? You can't possibly be afraid of me being attracted to _you_," Glorfindel said, laying on the incredulousness. He loved having an audience to work with. "You see, I have good taste in partners," he said, gesturing toward Erestor, who was sitting by in silent annoyance. "Whereas you… well, I think not."

"Uh-huh, what about your little goth butt-buddy there?"

"Who me?" Erestor said, knowing when to play Glor's game. "Well, I congratulate you on your recent weight loss, but I think that perhaps you should find a good tailor to help you with those old garments. A few simple stitches and they could be _wearable_ again."

By that time, Glorfindel was glowering openly at the miscreant, who was now wondering whether it was all that intelligent to mess with these two. Unfortunately, intelligence tends to hold very little sway over the ignorant. "Ooh, you're a hardcore lil' bitch, huh?" the malefactor rejoined.

Just about that time the proprietor took notice of the confrontation and decided intervention was best. It was entirely possible that Dan and Ro's friends were from a country that turned a blind eye to bar fights where matters of honor were concerned, Jason figured, but that would likely be bad for business here. "Hey, I don't like people talking to my customers that way," Jason said very meaningfully as he approached the younger man.

"I can talk however I want," retorted the antagonist. "Free country."

"Yeah, and so I am free to ask you to leave because you are offending me and my customers. Everyone is welcome here - except for haters, that is."

"Perhaps I can assist you," Glorfindel said, "you don't seem to understand that this gentleman would like you to be gone." Glorfindel turned to the bartender, "should I escort him to the way out?"

"Sure, just make sure you are off the premises if you feel the need to break his nose or something," Jason said with an amused smile.

Glorfindel lead the agitator away with a firm grasp on his arm that had the young man slightly alarmed. Moments later Elladan and Elrohir came back in laden with various equipment. Elrohir immediately began hooking everything up and doing some testing. Elladan, however, noticed that Erestor was alone at the table. He glanced around and didn't see Glor' anywhere and felt slightly panicked.

"Where'd he go?" Elladan nervously asked Erestor.

"Needed to take something out of here," Erestor said casually.

"He what?" Elladan asked again.

"A _hater _i think it was called," Erestor replied. "I guess you get a lot of that."

"Oh shit… he's not gonna start a fight, is he?" Elladan groaned, considering running outside to try to reign Glor' in… as if that was possible.

"What does it matter? He'll win if he does," Erestor said, taking a drink of his beer.

"Winning is not a good thing in this case," Elladan said, almost dragging a hand over his face but remembering that smeared mascara wouldn't look good.

"Sure it is," Jason said, coming over to the table with four more beers. "Then maybe next time the little punk won't be so quick to pick on others."

"We're going to run you broke, Jason," Elladan said, gladly taking another bottle.

"I'll just tell 'em to raise the cover charge. I expect it'll be a good show anyway, worth it. Nobody else plays like you kid," Jason winked.

"You're too kind," Elladan said, mock-playful.

"Same goes for your brother, but I'll tell him afterward. Enjoy!" Jason said, as Glorfindel came back in and sat down.

"Tell me you didn't beat whoever-it-was senseless?" Elladan begged of the Elda.

Glorfindel smiled. "You can't be referring to me… I would never do such a thing. How do you put up with that kind of behavior?"

"You just learn to live with it, that's all," Elladan sighed.

"Well, you might, but I don't. Another drink? Excellent! I really am starting to like it here, you know. Maybe we ought to stay around," he said to Erestor, who returned with a look that clearly said, 'if we are offered a chance to get home, I am taking it, with or without you.' Glorfindel just grinned, reading his mind like a book and going in for a kiss.

"Oh no! I don't want any more trouble because you can't control yourself," Erestor protested.

Glorfindel pouted moodily at the rejection. "Need some help?" he asked Elladan.

"Not unless you know how to tune up an electric bass," 'Dan said.

"He doesn't," Elrohir called over his shoulder, "but I know damn well you do."

"Ok, I'm on it," Elladan assured. "You do know what I want to close with tonight, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. You'll need my guitar for it though," Elrohir said, slightly indifferently.

"I won't hurt it, I promise," Elladan said, pointedly ignoring his brother's hints to come and tune up for himself. By then a few more of their friends had shown up and Elladan was off and talking to them, causing Elrohir to shake his head.

As usual, for all of Elrohir's pre-gig grumbling, as soon as they were both ready to go, his mood went straight back to lively and the show was superb. As they finished up the last song, Elladan set his bass aside and Elrohir handed over his guitar, quietly fading into the background. He was wondering how his twin would handle this solo, but he was glad 'Dan was finally taking this step.

'Dan began playing slow and steady, and those who knew him could almost see him telling himself to come to terms and accept that Alec was now gone from his life. A few times it was noticeable that his throat was constricting and it was harder to sing certain phrases, but if anything it only made his performance all the more poignant. Elladan had gotten through the song well enough until he came to the ending. Letting his eyes close and lifting up his face as he sang:

"..._It's not his touch  
In the room you both share  
When he's gone when he left  
When your time and your memory fills your dreams  
When you're honest and together  
Together no more  
No more…"_

Elladan seemed to be singing less from his vocals chords now than his heart, and indeed something even deeper. Being Elves, Elladan and Elrohir had always had a certain ability to captivate audiences with their music, but this was something different, something stronger, ethereal. In those moments as he sang, Elladan _saw_.

As the last notes flowed from his fingertips onto the guitar strings, like Elladan wasn't even aware he was still playing, and beautifully so no less, the vision evaporated and he was once again in the barroom. There was not a dry eye in the house, including his own, and the crowd applauded enthusiastically. Elladan bowed slightly, pulled the guitar strap over his head, handing the instrument back to his brother. Within moments, many of their friends were congratulating and chatting with them. Elladan had to force himself to be casual and he was able to, though it was certainly not easy to push away the memory of what he had just seen.

* * *

_Song quoted was Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen, in this case thinking of the version that Jeff Buckley performed in Chicago (on the Live in Chicago DVD - clip can be found on YouTube if you just have to see what i envisioned 'Dan's performance as)._

_Any similiarity of OC to persons living or deceased is purely coincidental. _

_And i promise i haven't abandoned my other works-in-progress. All in good time. _


	8. Staff Sergeant Alec Wight

(Text in _italics_ signifies thought.)

In a ditch lie a young man, his cropped dirty blond hair caked with mud and blood. Night had fallen, he was alone. With what little coherence he had left, he supposed that was a good thing, considering he was probably behind enemy lines and definitely incapable of running for it. He didn't even think he could walk. He'd had to crawl, pulling himself along, just like they'd taught him in boot camp, to get to just that margin of shelter under the tree.

It had been hours since the skirmish, hours since he'd witnessed one corporal gunned down, just before falling himself and seeing the look of abject horror on that private, who was way too young to his mind. The only thing he could do was "play dead" and hope the kid had the sense to get out of there, fast.

Now it was dark and cold. The pain in his leg was throbbing again, and though he knew he needed to attempt to at least find out what had hit him, he just could not bring himself to do it. He was scared to stillness. He'd been lucky in finding a place to hide and getting there, but the knowledge that the slightest movement could get him captured was keeping him from pressing his luck. He couldn't have found out much about whatever wounded him in the darkness anyway.

He laid his head down on the earth, cognizant of just how far away from home he was. As he looked upward, he could see specs of light through the branches of the tree that towered over him like a guardian, or a captor. Stars…. He'd never known anything about stars until a few years ago, when he'd met Danny. Despite himself, Staff Sergeant Alec Wight wept. Of everything that he was now in serious danger of losing, it was the thought of Danny that hurt the most.

_Stop crying! Stop crying! _Alec told himself over and over in his head. He knew he was already getting dehydrated and losing more liquid was not a good idea in the situation he was in. Of course, in the situation he was in, there wasn't much that was a good idea. Except maybe just giving up. He wondered if he tried to stay strong, alive for that matter, and fight back, could he ever see Danny again, or at the very least somehow get word to him? The thought of Danny never knowing what had happened was more than Alec could bear. Would he be left wondering forever, never to have closure?

As Alec lay in there in the ditch, huddled against himself, shivering and afraid and longing more for the arms of his lover than anything else, he felt himself beginning to drift out of consciousness. He tried to fight it, but it was of little use, his body was forcibly shutting itself down for repairs.

When he awoke, Alec could see nothing for the blinding light around him. His mind raced, trying to remember where he was and what had happened. It wasn't a hangover, he could tell that much. He remembered seeing Corporal Hays dead and then…. _Oh, God,_ Alec though, _am I dead?_ He remembered dragging himself under a tree and laying there in the night. _I think I was behind their lines… I am worse than dead, they've taken me. _He could hear voices not far off. He couldn't understand what they were saying, though they didn't sound like "enemy" voices, they sounded quiet and peaceful. _Maybe I am dead… what do angels sound like?_ He tried to assess his surroundings without moving or opening his eyes. He didn't think he was lying in a prison cell, nor did he feel confined or constrained. He actually felt quite comfortable. There was a soft pillow under his head. _Dead… no enemy would treat a POW this well. Unless I was rescued – did they come back for me? They should not have, it could have endangered everyone. This doesn't seem like a triage though; it's too quiet, serene. This is definitely not an army cot, that's for sure. Maybe I am dreaming… I shouldn't even be asleep, but this feels so real. Concentrate, Alec, wake yourself up! They're talking again, only these ones don't seem as peaceful. I can't be dreaming, I must have been caught…._

"But it does say _wight_, right there," Elrond said, wishing he'd found a way to trick the wizard he was currently arguing with into staying in Middle-earth.

"Elrond, kindly use the Elven half of your brain this once, will you. Do you really think they go about announcing what they are? This, in solid form, is a human man, injured and unwell, so… do your work, will you?" Gandalf said, getting tired of Elrond's ridiculousness. He'd thought it was a strain putting up with him before, but since their arrival on the White Shores, he'd only gotten worse.

"Will i? Will i? What I will is you away, but it doesn't seem to be working," Elrond fired back. "Look at what he is, yes, a man, and plainly mortal, but look at the garments, as well as the weapons. I have been in more battles than I care to discuss, but I have never seen such things. I am not certain that I dare to even touch him."

"Oh, by the Valar… did an evil spirit just turn up in the Blessed Realm without being noticed? _I _will do something about this then, as usual," Gandalf groused. Gandalf went over to bedside and gently laid a hand on the stranger's shoulder, glancing back at Elrond and only just managing to keep himself from sticking his tongue out. "Do you see, I have not turned into an orc."

"That happens to be debatable," Elrond said, arms crossed petulantly.

"Come there, lad, wake up and let's have a look at you, eh?" Gandalf coaxed, employing the Common Tongue.

Alec started at the touch, but suddenly felt calm. _What is this, why am I calm? I shouldn't be calm!_ he tried to tell himself. _He doesn't sound so bad, though. Maybe whoever it is can help me. _Slowly Alec opened his eyes and waited for the focus to return to them. When it did, he only had yet another fright and wished he hadn't opened his eyes at all. There beside him stood an old man with a long white beard. _Oh God… it's God. I knew I had to be dead. The next words out of his mouth are going to be, "sorry, fag, but you can't stay here."_

"Well now, there we are," Gandalf said cheerful. "Welcome. How are you feeling?"

_How am I feeling?_ Alec thought. _You mean you don't know? But aren't you supposed to know everything?_ Alec was too afraid to answer properly though.

Apparently his fear was obvious enough to Gandalf. "Ah, there's nothing to be afraid of here, contrary to what _some_ might think. I am Gandalf the Gre… eh, White. And this is my… _friend_, Elrond the Half-Elven."

_Why do those names sound familiar? _"Are you… you G-god?" Alec croaked, his vocal chords a little rusty.

"Now that _is_ laughable!" Elrond remarked.

_Who is that, St. Peter? He looks familiar…. He could practically be Danny's father!_

Gandalf glared, but quickly returned his attention to the young man. "No, not quite," he replied, preferring not to mention that he wasn't too far off from Valar status. Manwë was never too happy with Istari who thought too much of themselves, which was, to Gandalf's mind, why he'd allowed Hobbits into Valinor, to make damn sure Gandalf never thought too much of himself. "Now might I ask who you are?"

_Name, rank, and serial number. I don't remember my serial number. I don't think I even remember my name. Where am i? _That last thought Alec actually voiced aloud without realizing it.

"Aman," Elrond replied, guessing he'd might as well contribute to this.

"The White Shores," Gandalf said, as if Elrond hadn't said anything at all, "Valinor, the Undying Lands."

_Undying?! What do they mean by that? _"Where is home?" Alec asked. That reminded him of something… home meant Danny. "Where is Danny? Is he all right, does he know about me? Did they tell him I was killed?"

"Killed?" Elrond stepped in in concern. "No, you are most assuredly alive, young man. Were you not you would have been delivered to Mandos, not landed here with us."

"Where is here?" Alec asked. This was going nowhere and he was getting serious agitated. "Let me go… I need to return to my battalion. If you aren't an enemy, just let me go."

Gandalf looked very curious about this. "We are not your enemy, so long as you are not ours," he said, soothingly. "You are a soldier, that much is evident, but for whom do you fight? King Elessar or perhaps King Éomer?"

_Is this the mind games I was warned about? _"No, I am a soldier of the United States of America. I need to return to my battalion. Where am i?" _I should never have said Danny's name, damn it!_

"You are in Valinor," Gandalf said again. "Will you tell us your name?"

_Let me go and stop messing with my mind and I'll tell you whatever you want to know. _"I am Staff Sergeant Alec Wight."

"Told you there was a reasonable explanation… barrow-wight indeed!" Gandalf mumbled.

"Please… how did I get here?" Alec was ready to cry with frustration. They wouldn't tell him anything he could actually understand, like where the hell Valinor was!

"We were rather hoping you might provide us that information," Gandalf said.

_They already know about Danny… they'll break me down anyway. Or I can just take the fun out of it for them and not resist. What's the difference, they'll kill me one way or another. _"I was hit in the skirmish. Corporal Hays fell, he died before he hit the ground. Private Sztowski, he ran when he saw me get hit. I think the wound is in my leg. I crawled away for cover under a tree and I think I was behind enemy lines at that point. I laid there until after nightfall and I guess I passed out. That's all I know."

"Your leg was injured," Elrond said. "I can heal it for you."

"That's changing your tune!" Gandalf huffed. "You'll have to excuse him, young… Al-ec? He hasn't done any healing in a few years and he probably doesn't remember how it's done."

Elrond had taken enough from Gandalf for one night and shoved the Istar out of his way. "Pay no heed to him, upon re-embodiment, the good Lord Namo forgot to give him a brain. If you permit me to examine the wound, I am certain that I shall have it taken care of quickly."

Alec only nodded. _Taken care of… they'll probably amputate it._

"Hmm… a simple arrow wound, it seems. Only… something is lodged within the flesh. Did you break off the shaft?" Elrond queried.

_Arrow? Shaft? What sort of madhouse is this? Please, just let me go home, just let me go to Danny. _Alec was growing more and more anxious again and just shook his head.

Elrond spent a few more minutes in silent examination. "Well, there is definitely something under the skin. Something metallic, I believe. I saw enough of these things in the twins to know. Make yourself useful and fetch me something to work with, will you?" Elrond directed at Gandalf. "Surgical implements, please cleanse them in a flame, and a fair sampling of herbs, if you will. I'll relax him."

_Relax me?! I doubt it at this point. Please, all I want is to be left alone, I want to leave, I want to go back to Danny. I don't care if I'm AWOL. Danny… all I want is to hear your voice one last time. God help me._

"Al-ec? You seem troubled. Medicine here is not what it is in Middle-earth. Despite what Gandalf says, the truth is that I can do much more for you here than I ever could with the resources I had in Imladris. You needn't fear, I can promise you will feel no pain. I've done just this procedure for my twin sons countless times, and to my foster son as well, and none of them ever so much as flinched. I will brew a tea for you to drink first, you will be well."

Alec was not really placated by this though. "Don't operate," he pled in a whisper. "Just leave it. Let me go, I'll find my own way back, alright? I won't tell anyone about this place if that's what you want."

"Al-ec, please, do not fear," Elrond softly. He couldn't understand why the man was so terrified of him. "Finding your way back would be dangerous, if not entirely unwise. Perhaps you might seek an audience of Manwë, for I can not tell you why you have been brought here. I can only assure you that it was not for harm. Now, it would simply be best to let me heal your leg, and once you are recuperated, we can go about finding out more. What say you? You have my word that I shall not harm you."

By now there were tears standing in Alec's eyes. When he was sent into the war he thought he was prepared for anything. Maybe this was just a hallucination, but who knew? He thought he was dead and gone to heaven, but, although it was bright, this place was just too real, and they'd said he wasn't dead. He was starting to see that he was in an open room, a comfortable seeming place, with lots of plants. Not a dream, because the pain in his leg was too much. The only thing logical was that he was taken by enemies, but the old guy and the doctor did not seem like any enemy he'd ever faced.

The upset Elrond was reading in Alec's eyes was beginning to get to him. It was the part of him that had driven him to set aside his sword and become a healer, though tough and stern on the outside, Elrond could not bear to see others suffer. This young man was clearing suffering badly and Elrond wished he could help him find the home he was so desperate for. Good, healing sleep would be the best thing for 'Al-ec' and that damnable wizard was taking too long. "Will you take my hands?" Elrond asked quietly of Alec. He was going to have to do this manually.

Tentatively Alec reached out his hands, though they were shaking badly.

"Easy," Elrond whispered. "Sedho…," he whispered over and over until it began to lull Alec hypnotically. Elrond concentrated on the energy within and around the young man and found the tone linked to his thoughts to find out what was frightening him so. The fear there was rife… brainwashing, agony, tortures of the mind and body, the terrors that Al-ec feared were purely Morgul in nature. Was he afraid that this was what he was being subjected to? Then there was another thought, more painful than fearful, and when Elrond zeroed in on it, it took all of his control to ease out of the connection and not jar Alec's energies – could that really have been Elladan who Al-ec felt so strongly about?

When Gandalf finally returned with the collected medical accoutrements, Elrond looked to be the one pale and afraid, while Alec was resting quietly. Gandalf didn't need to ask, for Elrond looked up and said, "He knows Elladan… the twins, my sons, he knows them… and loves Elladan deeply."

"Well done, you've for once come to something useful by prowling around someone's mind uninvited. How are the twin terrors, then?" Gandalf asked, unimpressed.

It was telling that Elrond didn't even give him The Look for that. "Why is he here, Gandalf? Has something happened to them and he is sent to seek help? When i hit upon it, the strength of the love he feels almost threw me out of the connection. What if something's gone wrong in Arda? I'd hoped they would come across with us. Celebrian didn't think that any of them would be following though. What's happened to my boys…?"

Gandalf just sighed. "When will you learn, Elrond, when? You are right, this young man is here for a reason. That reason will be revealed to us in time, between now and then, there is naught we can do but help him. Seek the thought that this may not be an omen of eternal parting, Elrond. Perhaps there is another reason for his coming to our realm."


	9. The Rise and Fall of the Age of Men

After what felt like an eternity the crowd around the twins after the show died down. Elrohir was still chatting with friends as he was doing the break down roadie work, but Elladan had slipped off backstage, seeking a quiet moment. The experience he'd gone through while singing was still distressing him, the vision was seared into his consciousness. Neither twin had ever felt that they had quiet the degree of foresight that their grandmother, father, and sister had; while they could establish strong mental connections with ease, neither had ever been entirely captivated by a scene suddenly inserted into their consciousness whilst in the midst of some other task. It was disorienting to say the least, and Elladan was beginning to understand why daernana, ada, and Arwen tended to be the moody ones in the family.

"Dan, wanna take care of that mixer?" Elrohir asked, poking his head through the doorway without really looking _at_ his brother. Elrohir didn't wait for a response. Not that he would have received one anyway.

When Elladan did not come to take care of any of the equipment after a few minutes, Elrohir returned, this time actually looking for Elladan, wondering if he'd gone to pull the car around. Typically, they worked together getting all their gear broken down and into one place before bringing the car over and loading everything up. Elrohir found his brother sitting in the dark on a shabby, tweed-covered couch, staring dully ahead, looking like most people looked after taking a powerful antihistamine.

Elrohir sighed, guessing that the tribute to his lover had been a little harder than Elladan realized it might be. "You gonna be alright, bro?" Elrohir asked as gently as he could, sitting down beside his brother. It was hard to see 'Dan like this, but it was still better than seeing him in that long downward spiral. Irrigating a wound might be a horrendously painful experience, but it wasn't as bad as the result of letting infection take over.

Elladan was quiet for a few moments and Elrohir gave him that space. "Ro… I saw. I don't remember singing that last refrain… did i?"

"You saw what? And yes, you did sing, it was great, real powerful, brought the house to tears. You mean you spaced out while singing or something?" Elrohir asked in concern.

"I _saw_. I mean like daernana, ada…. I was standing here, singing, and then I just stepped into a vision. I saw…," Elladan began to choke up, but forced himself to talk to his brother. "I saw Alec, 'Ro. He was lying in a ditch under a tree, looking at the stars. He was alive, 'Ro."

Elrohir's heart sank to hear this from Elladan. He was starting to truly fear for his brother.

"But then I heard a voice, too. As the vision was fading, I heard this distinct voice say, '_The time of your wandering is ending, Peredhel. Look to your return_.'"

Their conversation was starting to actually hurt Elrohir to listen to. Here was his beloved brother, having visions and hearing voices. He'd snapped, Elrohir guessed, just finally really lost it. There was always medication, Elrohir thought, but what would anti-psychotic drugs do to an Elf?

"Elladan?" asked Glorfindel over by the door, "What did this voice sound like?" obviously having overheard.

"It was a woman," Elladan responded, somewhat numbly. "A rich, gentle voice, kind of like daernana."

"_The time of your wandering is ending_…," Glorfindel murmured in amazement. "_She_ spoke to you?"

"Who?" Elladan asked.

Elrohir sat by thinking they'd both lost their wits.

"Estë, of course. She invites you to rest," Glorfindel said, his mind working rapidly on this. "You had some vision, too, that would be Irmo's work, naturally."

"How would you know that?" Erestor, showing up at the doorway as well, asked his lover almost accusingly.

"Brother of Namo," Glorfindel said off-handedly. "You might remember that I spent some time with him. But that's unimportant. If they came to you, Elladan, there is a reason. They don't do that kind of thing very often at all."

Elrohir was trying very hard to keep from telling his brother and Glorfindel how insane they were sounding. As far as he was concerned, Erestor was the only one with sense left. With Elladan convincing himself that Alec was still alive and now Glorfindel telling him that the Valar were suddenly at it again and urging him to "return," Elrohir feared for his _own_ sanity.

"Listen, let's just get all this stuff ready to go, we'll head home, and see if we can't make some sense of this there, shall we?" Elrohir said hopefully. With Elladan's nod of consent, Elrohir gave him what was supposed to be a conciliatory pat on the back, and headed back out to the bar, asking Jason for a good, stiff drink.

Between the four of them, they managed to get all the gear stowed rather quickly and were ready to take off when Elladan went back into the barroom to check on his friend Lavinia. He knew she was having a hard night, too, and wouldn't mind someone sharing his state on the ride home. If she was half as drunk as she'd been the last time they'd had a pity party for themselves, there was no way he was letting her go home alone.

It didn't take much for Elladan to convince Lavinia to ride back with them. It was at least a relief for Elrohir that 'Dan and Glor' weren't trading theories about returning to Arda while in "mortal presence." The conversation was rather quiet for the hour-long return trip. Lavinia, admittedly in her cups, sat quietly falling asleep with Elladan, both feeling mournful, and together with Erestor in the back of the car, making a perfectly dreary dark-haired trio. Erestor, though no longer apart from his lover, knew all too well what the other two were going through and it wasn't hard for him to reflect upon. The years between the fall of Gondolin and Glorfindel's return to Arda had been plenty dismal enough for him to shape him into the lonely Elf most knew him as.

When the five arrived home, Elladan and Lavinia were out cold. Elrohir didn't know whether to be annoyed, worried, or sympathetic. He did sympathize with Lavinia, if only because she accepted what was, whereas his brother just did not.

Glorfindel decided to step in and make himself useful. "Can I get into this lady's house?" he asked.

Elrohir pointed to a key hung on the wall, and said, "she's right next door, 1101."

"I'll take her home and you get your brother up to bed. He needs some rest after the encounter he had. It is a draining experience, believe me. Take that key and get the door for me, 'Restor, and I'll carry her. She won't be too well when she wakes," Glorfindel opined.

Erestor stopped himself short of glaring at his lover. Glorfindel was just too used to giving orders and Erestor was too used to not taking them. "You are going to carry an unconscious woman into her home in full view?" Erestor asked haughtily. "At this hour of the night?"

"Indeed, and then once this poor lady is safely home, I intend to pull you into bed, fully conscious, with your body in full view, until a much later hour of the night. Does that suit you?" Glorfindel replied.

Elrohir rolled his eyes as he lifted his insensible twin from the car, quiet glad it was a convertible.

Erestor flushed brightly to have Glorfindel say such things in the presence of Elrond's sons, but it was motivation enough for him to grab the key and practically run to the neighboring house.


End file.
